Crackdown on Chinese Churches, Cross Removal in China Continues

According to China Aid, a watchdog group that has been closely following the ongoing cross-removal campaign in China, one pastor said all people in one district of Zhejiang received a notice about the removal of crosses.

Regions of China have seen a continued crackdown on the removal of crosses in Christian buildings, and authorities in coastal Zhejiang province are the latest to call for a removal of all crosses from churches in the region.

One church in Zhejiang, Pingyuan Church, re-installed their cross twice in two weeks after it was initially demolished on May 9. ChinaAid reports that the cross was removed again on Tuesday. Between May 7 and 9, eight other churches in the region had their crosses removed, and they all had their crosses re-installed.Read: Roof-top Crosses Banned in China

A recent report released by ChinaAid states that 2014 saw rising cases in the persecution of Christians. There were 572 documented cases of persecution in 2014 in which 17,884 religious practitioners were persecuted, representing a 300 percent increase since 2013.

ChinaAid says that persecution in the Zhejiang province and the crackdown on “cult activities” is what contributed the most to the increase of persecution in the region.

China’s churches are only legal if they comply with strict government laws, including not having visible crosses. State officials removed more than 200 crosses in 2014.